Božena Bulum, PhD and Scientific Adviser with Tenure at the Adriatic Institute, participated on June 12 at the “The Harmonisation Process of Inland Water Transport Law in EU Member States – Open Legal Issues” conference, organized by the Italian Association for Inland Waterway Law at Ca’ Foscari University in Venice.
The need to simplify and harmonize the regulatory framework for inland waterway transport and international river-sea shipping was emphasized during the conference. Particular attention was given to legal issues related to river-sea transport, which is currently regulated differently across EU Member States.
Furthermore, the necessity of regulatory harmonization was also highlighted in the context of international autonomous inland navigation, which raises many questions—especially regarding the classification of different levels of vessel autonomy, liability for shipowners and crew, and issues related to insurance.
Dr. Bulum informed the President of the Italian Association for Inland Waterway Law, attorney Massimiliano Grimaldi, about the legal framework governing inland navigation in the Republic of Croatia, as well as the development of nautical tourism on its inland waterways. In this context, she presented data indicating a significant increase in interest in this form of tourism in Croatia. In 2024, 88,572 passengers were recorded on international river cruises, and 1,388,154 on domestic excursion navigation.
